Hitch in Alves deal as clubs wrangle over fee

An agreement worth an initial £21.5million was thought to have been close last night but the Stamford Bridge club insist they never shook hands on a deal.

Chelsea have baulked at Sevilla's demands and are prepared to walk away if Alves becomes cup-tied by playing in the Champions League qualifier against AEK Athens tonight.

The Brazilian wing-back was initially left out of the squad after he told coach Juande Ramos he was in no condition to play, but his eligibility for European competition appears to have become a bargaining chip in negotiations.

A Chelsea statement said: "We have confirmed our interest in the player to Sevilla but as yet there is no agreement."

Reports in Spain claim the proposed deal, which included an additional £3m in performance-related payments, was vetoed by Roman Abramovich.

If a fee can be agreed it will represent an enormous profit for Sevilla, who paid only £700,000 for Alves when they bought him from Brazilian side Bahia four years ago.

Liverpool were favourites to sign the 24-year-old last summer, when he was rated at around £12m, but he has since made it clear he wants to move to Stamford Bridge.

Real Madrid have also shown interest during this transfer window but the Spanish club's main target is Chelsea's Arjen Robben and that on-off move is expected to get back on track if a deal for Alves goes through.

Meanwhile, Scott Sinclair has signed a new four-year contract.

The 18-year-old winger made a big impression on loan at Plymouth last season and has been brought into Jose Mourinho's first-team squad for this campaign.

Sinclair joined Chelsea from Bristol Rovers two years ago.